Down, Down, Down in the Ground
by Megakat Salvage
Summary: When Dark Kat's volcano hideout becomes a death trap for our heroes and Felina Feral, tough choices have to be made. Some graphic medical descriptions.
1. Chapter 1

((OK so I was trolling around on Deviantart at some SWAT Kat art. Not remembering now whose. Anyway.

Someone had their original SWAT Kats character, and one comment threw me into near apoplexy:

"I don't know who these people are, but furries are always awesome."

Furries. FURRIES. ARGH. (And please don't accuse me of bad mouthing furry lovers, because I have furry OCs and have text based RPd them doing exactly what I'm about to complain about.)

I adore the SWAT Kats, and I yearn and hope there is a movie or a new cartoon or an official comic or a -something- coming soon. However I dread it as well because FURRIES WAS BARELY A THING IN THE NINETIES. If I'm correct they started doing some things about fur characters at cons in the mid eighties, but it wasn't a widespread popular internet 'thing' yet that I am aware of. Now it's known. It's everywhere and fur characters are always considered furries.

But furries are not the same as my SWAT Kats! With furries it's all *purr purr sexy tail swish swishy throat nip sexy* Let's marry a sexy leopard and a sexy rabbit-fox hybrid! Quick let's have furry babies! ! I can't just be an awesome anthropomorphic cat character with a rocking plot line and lots of explosions and amazingly, a jet AND cool music. I AM FOREVER A HYPERSEXUALIZED FURRY BECAUSE FURRIES ARE A SEXY THING NOW! YIFF YIFF!

And I fear the influence of furrydom on my favorite butt kicking kitty people. Forgive my rant. I do not want to marginalize anybody's furry love. But the SWAT Kats are NOT furries, they're totally more awesomer! … ARGH. I LOVE THEM SO MUCH. IT REALLY BOTHERS ME.))

((I do not own SWAT Kats. I am not profiting from this fanfic in any way shape or form, other than my own amusement and the amusement of others. Credit to where it is due to the Dropkick Murphys))

When the insides of the volcano started to fall in, he roared "FELINA! HOLD ON!" at the top of his lungs. It wasn't enough to be heard; and then there was nothing left to hold on to.

The dirt fall seems all the louder as it continues funneling down the shaft through the rock. She clings to the stair railing and gets one glimpse of two helmet lights shining on the rock wall of the cavern shaft, then the dirt hits them and they're tumbling down. They wink out but not before just enough light reflects to illuminate the metal stair she's clinging to being torn from the rock. The surface under her feet bucks as the struts separate, something punches her in the gut and she's tossed away into free air, until the dirt grasps her. Despite the ache in her gut she is windmilling her legs wildly to stay above the surface but the dirt fall sucks her under, and from then on she's unsure which direction is up. Reflexively she tries to pull her limbs in, but the avalanche has her and she's taken where it will.

Something is pushing on her face so she turns her head a tiny bit, and there's a rush of soil around her head. She tries to take a breath, but inhales dirt. Desperately she fights against the pressures pushing her down, somehow turns her head a little and gets a half breath of dust filled, too-warm air.

"Lieutenant!" Scraping noises echo faintly nearby.

She opens her mouth to scream and the soft sand and dirt moves in to steal the precious last half-breath of air. She chokes as her mouth fills. Gagging, she tries to push her hands to her face, but she can't pull them against the pressures pinning them down.

 _Air, need air, got to get air!_

 _This is not happening. This is not how I'm going to die! ...Is it?_

The scraping noises halted a moment and then, "There!" shouts a voice. Dust falls even more heavily into her face. A dull roaring is in her ears and she can feel herself blacking out.

Then bright light breaks through and a hand touches her face. "Here, get her head," says a deep voice as the hand scoops back under her neck and lifts it up while other gentle hands are pushing the dirt away from her head. Face free from the soil, she gags out a mouthful of dirt, takes a welcome breath of clean air and chokes again, with the bitter dirt taste still on her tongue. The familiar shape of an oxygen mask from a g-suit is fitted over her mouth. She alternates between hacking coughs and shuddering breaths. Soil trickles down around her cheeks as hands brush it away to expose her ears and neck.

"Lieutenant, can you hear me?" T-Bone asks, with alarm in his voice. Felina's eyes crack open, and she winces as the lids fill with dirt. She makes a disgusted noise and tries to shake her head to try to get the dirt out. Earth crumbles fall around her and her ears are full of soft soil.

"Hold on, " T-Bone says, and something wet is gently drawn over her eyes to move the worst of the dirt away. She opens her eyes and sees T-Bone hovering over her, wet gauze in one hand and the other scooped behind her neck, with gravity holding the mask from his g-suit over her face. Razor is only a foot or two away clawing through the dirt. "...Hey…. feel like a mountain fell on me," she jokes weakly.

T-Bone chuckles with relief in his voice. "Kind of because one did. Can you move?" he asks.

She nods. "Think so... Yeah. I can wriggle my toes and everything. Woot woot."

Razor snorts back a laugh. "Well that's good news, because we're probably going to have to do some climbing to get out of here," he says, dirt flying. The dust in the air is oppressive and T-Bone stifles a hacking cough with his arm. He tucks the gauze in a pocket before starting to dig at Felina's shoulders and head again cautiously. Dirt shifts at round her face and she squints her eyes closed again.

At least the serial explosions and the thundering had ended but there was still a light trickling noise, like water flowing. She opens one eye and glances around, seeing that she's practically doing a hand stand, on her back in a mountain of very soft dirt. Far overhead she can see the rock shaft above the cavern wall, where they'd been clinging to the metal stairs and railing when the explosion happened. The pile of earth towered upwards to the shafts very mouth, and the high ceilinged cavern they were now occupying had a new floor of dirt through most of it. The cavern was pitch black outside of the range of light from the SWAT Kats helmets.

T-Bone is trying to excavate around her head carefully but little trickles are moving downwards and around all the time. He shakes his head and takes the oxygen mask off, moving away. Brighter light from the headlight of the cyclotron shines her way. He returns with what appears to be a piece of tarp, and is tucking it in around Felina's shoulders and face, and then tents it over her head. "Hopefully this'll keep the whole pile from rolling into your eyes again, Lieutenant," he says. She can feel him clawing at the dirt pinning her shoulders. Razor is a couple feet higher up in the pile, trying to pull the dirt off to the side to keep it from pouring downwards again. "This is pretty shifty stuff, T-Bone," he says, his foot sinking to the ankle.

"Yeah I think…. Maybe we can tug her out, if we're careful?" he says, glancing at the trickles of dirt with uncertain eyes. Razor glances up at the tons of dirt that had tumbled through the shaft.

"Maybe. I would try digging some deeper though," Razor replies, and starts in with renewed strength.

Felina coughs again under the tarp, and T-Bone quickly shifts it to put the mask over her face again. "T-Bone, I'm fine."

"Just let Ol' T-Bone fuss, alright Lieutenant? It's got to be dusty down in that hole," he says, muffled a little. Felina shivers, staring up at the tarp.

The two SWAT Kats work doggedly for several minutes, and T-Bone pauses. "Hey, found your arm Lieutenant," he says, happy as a kitten at an Easter egg hunt, and grabs her hand. "...Lieutenant?" he calls when she doesn't immediately answer.

"My stomach hurts," she comments, sort of puzzled sounding. T-Bone pulls the tarp back again and eyes her appraisingly. She's pale, and starting to sweat. "Crud. Come on Razor, we don't got time to keep digging," T-Bone says with worry and he burrows his arms under her armpits and tries to tug. He meets resistance and Felina's eyes fly open.

"Ow, ow OW! The hell are you doing?!" she exclaims, glancing at him and markedly more awake. "T-Bone, don't. We don't know how she's hurt yet." Razor slides down the pile a foot and starts digging at her chest. "I think we're almost…"

A low rumble starts up high above them and T-Bone's eyes widen. A cloud of dust is roaring downwards.

"CRUD!" the SWAT Kats shout, and T-Bone throws the tarp over Felina's head just as they're both swept under. Razor has just enough time to sweep his oxygen mask to his face before he's swept away. He claws frantically for purchase in the dirt but winds up curled into a ball, encased with soft soil.

He tries flailing out but his hands are effectively pinned, at least somewhat. That, and he's entirely disoriented. However something from survival training comes to him and he spits. Gravity pulls the saliva back to smack him in the cheek, and he knows to begin digging upwards. A couple handfuls of dirt and a hand breaks through, a minute more and he is looking around. More dirt has filled the chamber, but the shaft is still blocked. The Cyclotron has been knocked over and shoved ten feet along but seemingly unharmed. There's no sign of his partner or Felina Feral.

"T-BONE?!" Razor shouts, as he's fighting his way out of the soil. The radio crackles, static covering the transmission, but Razor also hears a muffled call. He hurries towards it and spots motion in the soil. Digging frantically in the moving area finds the tarp. More digging and he pulls it back, and T-Bone squints at him, hacking up dust balls. He has Felina wrapped tightly in his arms, with his hand holding the oxygen mask over her face. "T-Bone, are you alright?" Razor asks, relief all over his face.

"Yeah, yeah just help me get the Lieutenant out of here, Sureshot," T-Bone growls, starting to hack again.

"Is it over?" Felina mumbles into the mask, inching one eye open. "Yeah….." T-Bone glances up, the light on his helmet disappearing into the darkness above. "...let's get you out of here before that happens again. This cavern's gonna fill up at this rate."

"That may not be a bad thing, buddy, if we can just stay above it," Razor replies, digging carefully. The dirt fall had pushed them farther out towards the side of the chamber, instead of precariously below the fall. There wasn't any more dirt filling in to slow them down, so between T-Bone and Razor they were mostly out within a couple minutes. T-Bone gently reaches to help Felina up, then freezes. "Razor. Where's the blood coming from?" he whispers, eyes wide.

"Am I bleeding?" Felina asks in surprise. "Oh. I thought I felt wet. I honestly thought I pissed myself or something."

Razor stares a moment, says a filthy word and suddenly takes off towards the Cyclotron.

T-Bone gives her an odd look then moves sit in the dirt beside her. "Just relax a bit, alright?" He scoots over and slips an arm below her shoulders to support her. "You can't tell me you're all that surprised you're hurt. You're letting me rescue you," he teases. "So you must feel like crud."

She shrugs minutely. "I'll put up with a rescue today... my gut really does hurt. How much blood are we talking?" she asks, lifting her head. T-Bone takes his fingers under her chin and tilts it back the other way.

"It's not that much," he says calmly, and she eyes him. "You're a liar," she accuses and jerks her chin away. He yanks at the tarp so it blocks her view and scowls at her. "Lieutenant, don't look," he says sharply.

"Dammit, T-Bone! I'm not a kitten!" Angrily she begins to grab at the tarp. Anticipating her move the tom grabs both her wrists with one big hand and the arm beneath her pulls her close against himself, clamping her shoulders against her sides. She finds herself unable to pull away from his strong grip and Felina pales, not from pain but from livid anger. "Don't even-" she snarls, starting to curl her torso to knee him in the side, but a flash of pain at the movement chokes the words out of her.

 _Kats alive, it feels like something's stirring a stick in my insides._

T-Bone immediately he lets go of her wrists and carefully adjusts her to lay back a bit, still in his arms. A hand brushes the hair back away from her face and she hears T-Bone sigh. "How are you still an Enforcer when you don't listen?" he asks frustratedly.

She takes a gulping breath and it takes a moment for her to stop trembling and her eyes to focus on him, and then she clears her throat. "Crud…. that really hurts. And the answer is I don't listen, but if Uncle kicked me off the force Dad would never speak to him again," she replies with a smirk.

"Why am I not surprised at that?" he asks. "Just choose to let us help you then, so I don't have to tell you to do stuff you won't do. Razor went to get the medkit and we got pain stuff so..."

"Don't. I'm fine now... It's passed. But I still want to see," she adds.

T-Bone tugs the tarp back up and Felina snorts. "Bossy jerk."

"Stubborn she-Kat," he replies.

Before she can retort back they're interrupted as Razor returns with a small bag with a cross on it.

"Alright I got the med kit," Razor says hurriedly, and T-Bone cranes his neck over the tarp. Razor crouches down and she hears him unzip it, starting to pull items out she supposed by the crackling sound, but the stupid tarp is doing its job. "Lieutenant, I've got to cut into your uniform," says Razor's disembodied voice, and there are ripping noises. "... Hey, you're getting a little personal there!" Felina says suddenly, trying to shift away from the hands she feels at her abdomen. A nausea inducing flow of pain ripples through her torso and she promptly vomits all over T-Bone's chest.

T-Bone flinches but doesn't pull away, he just shifts her a little so her head is not quite pointing straight towards him.

"...she just upchucked didn't she?" Razor says, and peers over at them. "Oh oh... Sorry buddy. Sorry Lieutenant..."

She gags again as another wave of pain spirals through her but nothing comes up this time. By the amount plastering T-Bone, there couldn't be much left. She takes a breath and glances at Razor. "Whatever you're doing, just get it done okay?"

"Okay just... Try to breathe through it," Razor responds and disappears from her view again.

Felina glances up at T-Bone and makes an apologetic grin. "I am sooooo sorry..."

"Hey, don't worry about it," T-Bone says with a shrug that jostles her and she hisses back a yelp. The stabbing pressure at her belly is still there, but Razor must be being more cautious.

"Oh yeah, like you're okay with it. Besides, you throw it up, you clean it up."

"That's in the cockpit," T-Bone replies, grinning at her. "I won't make you scrub it this time. Here, look, it's fine," he adds, and grabs a couple handfuls of dirt and uses them to scrub himself down. It makes his g-suit dirtier if that's possible, but it at least scours the wet vomit away. "Razor we got any more water?" he calls. "Yeah, here, catch…." A half empty plastic bottle flies up and T-Bone plucks it out of mid-air. "Don't swallow this, alright?" he cautions her, awkwardly removing the cap since he's still got one arm under her body. "Just rinse and spit."

She rolls her eyes, yanks the bottle out of his hand, and eyes the red blood smear on the plastic. But she doesn't say anything and takes a sip, spitting the water away from the poor SWAT Kat this time. Her whole body jostles and she grits her teeth, emitting a hiss of pain as Razors hands press down on something that really hurts.

When it lets up she gulps a breath, eyes closed. Reflexively she had crushed the bottle in her hands and water spilled everywhere. The bottle is taken out of her grip and she threads her hands through a strap on T-Bone's shoulder harness instead. It gives her something to cling on and T-Bone doesn't complain.

Something wet touches her ear; he's trying to wipe the dirt out with some wet gauze. It's a tender, too intimate act and she wonders to herself why she doesn't stop him. Then she gags as another wave of nausea ripples up and T-Bone hurriedly moves to support her head as she brings up some green bile.

"...Razor, the hell are you doing?" she asks, irritated. "Almost done, Lieutenant," Razor replies, and she winces at another stabbing pain into her belly. "Whatever…." she reaches up to her head, and frowns. "Lost my helmet?"

"Yeah it's under that pile somewhere. Good thing you got such a hard head," T-Bone quips. He offers her another sip from the abused bottle. She swishes obediently, before spitting again. And takes the cap from him, twisting it closed.

"Oh hah hah…. that means I lost my radio though."

"Well we don't have any better reception down here than we did earlier in the laboratory," Razor replies, peeking over the tarp at her. He glances at T-Bone a moment and then is out of sight again. "Dark Kat's either got this place really well shielded, or we're just that deep. I'm not sure which is which."

She shakes her head. "I can't believe Dark Crud got away again," she says frustratedly.

"Yeah par for the course, isn't it?" Razor replies.

T-Bone growls low in his throat. "How many times is it gonna take us to nail that psycho? I really thought we had him Lieutenant, when you chucked that creepling into his lab setup."

"Yeah... It was great seeing him that enraged. 'Noooooooooo!'" she mocks, with a smile.

"You always have had great timing, Lieutenant. Still, can't be surprised that he had the place wired to blow, or that he had a self destruct button on him," Razor comments.

"Aaaah, we shoulda went after him when he ducked down that tunnel, instead of trying to get out when the place started rumbling," T-Bone grumbles.

"Well... Hindsight is 20/20 isn't it. Besides..." There's silence for a moment then Razor starts to gag, and he gets hurriedly to his feet.

"You alright?" Felina asks, wondering at T-Bone's grim expression.

He walks away a second, his forearm over his muzzle and after a moment he nods. "Oh yeah. You know. Hairball. Dust and hair balls." He takes a couple breaths and returns, giving T-Bone a significant glance before crouching down again.

Felina can feel T-Bone's arms trembling and she spots the glare he's delivering to the dark surrounding them. "When I get ahold of Dark Crud I'm going to rip his head from his filthy neck," he vows.

She pats his forearm with her fingertips. "Down, boy," she commands and Razor snorts back a laugh. T-Bone gives her an annoyed look then kinda chuckles, despite himself.

"So Lieutenant, how'd you manage to get to that lab where we met up anyway?" Razor asks. "

"Well I was observing from my chopper when I saw an object fly through what I thought was a solid wall. Turns out there was a cave entrance there, but it was cloaked. Anyway, I kind of didn't hesitate. And then I headed towards the noise, and found you two in the thick of it. You know, I'm really pretty thirsty…". T-Bone glances uneasily over the tarp, presumably at Razor or whatever he's doing. "I wouldn't let her drink anything, buddy," Razor says, and stands.

He's pulling bloodied gloves off his hands and starting to open up a silvery package. "I think that's all I can do right now. Not sure what else there would be anyway. We got to keep her warm." Razor is opening up a space blanket. The two SWAT Kats get Felina shifted enough that the blanket is tucked under her, she's wrapped tightly, and then T-Bone cradles her in his arms and is carrying her towards the wall of the cavern. "Think we can get up on that ledge?" Razor asks, and T-Bone eyes the distance. "Be a lot safer, if more of that crud comes raining down," he agrees, and Razor clambers up a couple feet above their heads, to a wide ledge in the cavern wall. "One two UP!" T-Bone practically overhead presses Felina, who yelps in surprise, and Razor grabs her, pulling her to a safer position. T-Bone scrambles up next and Razor glances down at the Cyclotron. "I'm goin' to see if I can figure out something that'll boost our radio frequencies. Just stay here with her, alright buddy?" he says, and hops down to the cavern floor again.

"Heh, no fear of that huh? You doing ok, Lieutenant?" he asks. He settles down next to her on the ground, and Felina shrugs. "I'm not real comfortable…. T-Bone, tell me."

"Hm? Tell you what?" he asks. He eyes her a moment and then scoops her up. She's settled into his lap, her head against his shoulder and his arm supporting her back. "Better?"

"Yeah kinda," she replies, and settles her head against his shoulder. "I'm waiting."

He sighs. "Lieutenant…"

"Felina. Come on. Tell me. Neither of you are very convincing liars. Besides, it hurts a lot. If you don't I'm just gonna think the worst."

"... Uh. Puncture wound. Piece out of that stairway that came down. It's not in a good place."

"Smells bad?" she asks, dreading the answer.

He nods slowly. "Yeaaah you could say that."

"Well. Great," she shrugs, then makes a face. "Guess I shouldn't of asked."

"Maybe someday you'll learn to trust me, Lieutenant," he comments as he's digging in a pocket on his suit. He pulls a toothpick out and tucks it into his mouth then notes her expression. "What?"

"Why d'you carry toothpicks?" she asks, looking at him oddly.

He grins, toothpick clenched in his teeth and wriggles it with his tongue. "Mini-lance for killing creeplings?," he suggests.

She chuckles, and licks her dry lips. "No, really."

He shrugs, and grabs the water bottle, handing it to her and twisting the cap off. "I don't know... It's a habit I guess. I tend to chew on them when I think. Don't swallow," he reminds her as she sips.

She turns her head and spits. "Yeah yeah," she mutters. "Stupid gut wound."

He settles so his back is against the wall and just kinda pats her arm. "Well, Lieutenant, alone at last," he says dreamily.

"You have got to be kidding me."

"What? The ol' T-Bone charm too much for you?"

"The ridiculous thing is, I'm not sure you're joking," she replies with a scowl for his benefit.

He pauses, absorbing the implications of that statement. "Can't I do anything right with you," he grumbles, and he sounds so dejected Felina almost feels bad for him. "You can start by calling me Felina, like I asked earlier."

"Hey, you two," Razor calls, as he climbs up onto the ledge. He's got the tarp with him, and a couple small packs. "How you doin,' Lieutenant?"

"T-Bone and I are bonding," she says drily.

"Woah, sounds fun and dangerous all at once. Here, T-Bone, lay her down a minute, I need your help with something."

"Razor," she says sharply, and both SWAT Kats look at her with surprise. "Are you trying to go off and talk without me hearing. Aren't you?"

"Lieutenant, I-," Razor stammers.

"Cut the crud, Razor! I need to be kept in the loop. Alright? Please," she adds, glancing at him.

T-Bone grins. "She's got us figured out, don't she, Razor?" He almost sounds proud.

"Yeah but... Lieutenant I'm just trying not to worry you," he says but Felina shakes her head angrily. "Look, I'm in on this with you two. And I maybe can help. I've had Enforcer training, maybe I can think of something that you can't," she adds.

She notices curiously that T-Bone looks rather bemused but Razor cracks a grin. "Well she sure told us, huh?" he comments, and he crouches on his haunches next to them. "Alright. I took a quick look around at the way we came in," he says, gesturing. Somewhere below the tons of dirt was the tunnel that the SWAT Kats had used to enter the cavern on their cyclotron. They'd thenleft it and climbed the stair up to Dark Kat's lair, and the same route had been their planned exit. "I thought about planting some charges to clear the opening, but I think I'd just bring more dirt down here."

"...what'd you say earlier?" Felina asks suddenly. "What about?" Razor asks, glancing up.

"About the dirt falling in not being so bad," she says insistently, and T-Bone nods. "Yeah, what'd you mean, Sureshot?"

Razor shrugs. "Well, uh, it's an idea I had. This sort of organic matter and gravel isn't going to naturally be inside a volcano," he explains. "I think this is a booby-trap and Dark Kat placed the dirt fall with charges set to take out whoever might be using this backdoor of his. Those explosions he triggered were set to cause that avalanche. If we could cause it all to fall, but stay above it maybe we could use it to get out. 'If' is the operative term."

He points up at the entrance near the ceiling of the chamber, blocked now with the dirt and rock. "Even if clearing that were really an option, I'd hate to walk back into Dark Kats' waiting arms. That at least separates us. I'm going to do some test scans though, just to see."

"So, if we do manage to climb up, and avoid Dark Crud then where do we go from there?" T-Bone asks.

"Well, the Lieutenant got in through some sort of aircraft bay, wasn't it?"

Felina nods. "My chopper is still up there, but I don't know if the chamber I left it in is still standing. I saw a lot of wiring running along its ceiling. Wouldn't surprise me if he placed charges in it."

"It's the kind of thing Dark Kat world do," Razor agrees. "I guess the easy answer to your question, T-Bone, is I don't know." He scratches at the side of his head a moment and looks to Felina. "Another option is to wait for your Uncle to send Enforcers in after us, but I'm not sure they know we're alive, much less where we are," he says calmly. "Then there's the problem of actually getting to us. I wish we'd used the TurboMole for this mission, but we needed the Cyclotron's speed."

T-Bone is chomping on his toothpick. "Yeah and with the security you got on the Turbokat? They can't just borrow it."

"I can't reach it by remote, either," Razor says apologetically.

"What's the matter, Razor? Can't build a amplifier out of a rubber band and two sticks?"

"Oh sure, no problem. I'll get on making the rubber band when you find me two sticks inside this volcano," he says sarcastically.

"Any luck with the radio?"

"Well that I was able to boost easily with the transmitter on the Cyclotron," he replies as he sets the tarp and bags down nearby. Next he's crouching near the two and starting to clear a spot in the thin dirt scattered on the ledge with his hands. "Got a lot of static. Though I'm hopeful they know now that somebody's alive down here." He places a small blue block on the ground and starts piling rocks around it.

"Air's kinda bad in here for a fire, Razor," T-Bone says and Razor nods, intent on his work. "Yeah, but we may want to anyway. The Lieutenant's shivering."

She bares her teeth at him. "Am not."

"Uh huh."

"... What's under the chamber floor?" Felina interrupts the poking fun with her question and Razor blinks. "Huh, I don't know actually," he admits. "Why?"

"Could you place charges and let all that," she nods towards the dirt, "just fall through the floor?"

Razor grins. "Interesting... Maybe," he admits, "if there's enough space under us. But I'd rather not experiment with make-shift charges. Besides, we could fall through too if I mess up. I'll scan again."

He was flicking a lighter and the blue material in the new fire ring starts to burn brightly.

"So it's a case of 'hurry up and wait'," T-Bone says grimly.

"Well, at least for now, Hotshot," Razor agrees. "But at least there's a better chance of radio contact now." He gets back to his feet and unslings a pack from his back, and sets it down within easy reach. "I tucked all the water and MREs in the med kit here. I'll be back, I'm going to do some more poking around."

"Right, we're good here aren't we Lieutenant?" T-Bone says, glancing at Felina who gives him a warbly smile. "Yeah… peachy."

Razor hops down from the ledge, and there's a noise of dirt shifting and clattering as he heads back towards the base of the pile. Felina watches him go and tries sitting up a little, her eyes widening. She sucks breath and T-Bone tries to adjust her, enough so she's leaning a little differently against his chest. She sighs with relief and he pats her shoulder awkwardly. "...Sooo… uh."

"Yeah?"

"How you doing?" he asks. "And I'm really asking."

"I dunno… I feel pretty okay if I don't move. I wouldn't want to get up and run a marathon," she admits. "I'm tired and I hurt and I'm cold."

"Heh well I guess that's to be expected… you ever run a marathon, Lieu- er, Felina?" T-Bone asks.

"Yeah actually. Last summer I did a half and a full," she replies, perking up a bit. "The full was pretty hard, it was that Megakat Days with the 100 degree heat."

"Oh yeah I remember that. Miserable," he agrees.

"You run?" she asks.

"Nah. Well, me'n Razor run for training but I don't go do marathons. Razor tried an Iron Kat triathlon once."

She blinks. "Really? How'd he do?"

"Well he did great through the first portion, but there was a big bike crash…. He got caught up in that," he replies. "That was…. well let's see… That'd be what…. almost 12 years ago, something like that?"

She winces. "I think I saw that on TV," she replies, and smirks. "Hm. Wonder where I can find a recording?"

He eyes her. "You're going to drive yourself nuts guessing which Kat is which," he warns her. "Besides. He was barely out of high school."

"Oh I'm sure he looked totally different. Let me guess, he was a short, fat grey persian?"

He laughs, and reaches for the med kit, but immediately finds cause to put it down. There's a crackling in his radio and he taps it, hearing only static. "T-Bone here. Repeat?" He listens to the clicks and repeats himself again. "Somebody just ran through all the bandwidths." He listens a moment longer before shaking his head. "All I got is static but it's definitely switching bandwidths."

"I'd say Razor has contacted somebody," Felina says hopefully, though T-Bone looks unconvinced.

"T-Bone!" Razor is calling from across the cavern, and waving. "Gonna place a charge!"

"Affirmative! Give me a sec!" He calls back, and reaches to grab the tarp. Felina chokes back a little whine and he looks at her apologetically as he's arranging it over the two of them and trying to tuck it under. "Here, cover your mouth," he says, pulling a bandana out of his pocket. He puts it in her hand and pours on a little of the water.

"FIRE IN THE HOLE!" Razor shouts, and the radio crackles as well.

There's a pretty quiet 'pop' and a rushing noise as more dirt falls, and little clumps patter against the tarp. Four more 'pops' sound and T-Bone and Felina huddle there, waiting, while the trickling falling dirt sounds get quiet.

"Razor?" he shouts, and there's a crackle on his radio. "He must be okay. Give me a second, alright, Lieutenant?" he says apologetically, and he moves enough to lay her down. It doesn't get as dusty with the tarp, but as soon as T-Bone pushes the tarp away it's like stepping into the Dust Bowl. She smiles at him behind her bandana mask, and he tucks the tarp back in after exiting.

Eyes closed, she can hear his footprints moving away. The pain in her side isn't so bad when she's not moving, but she can feel it with every breath. And she wonders if she should look. "Damn I'm cold," she grumbles, shivering.

She must of slipped off to sleep, because when she woke up it was to the quiet voices of the two vigilantes. The tarp was no longer covering her head and the air was clearer. She looks up and finds the two next to the fire which is burning with chemical cheer. "What'd you blow up?" she asks, glancing at Razor.

The two vigilantes glance up from where they were crouching by the fire ring, helmets almost touching.

"Uh… well not what I wanted," he admits. "I'm waiting for the dirt to stop moving, see it trickling over there?" he points at the far wall. "I may blow another charge."

"No easy fix huh?"

He shakes his head but grins. "Got to have some challenges in life, Lieutenant." He gets to his feet, stretches his arms above his head, and wanders off, seemingly in thought.

T-Bone crouches next to her. "Hey there, pretty lady," he says so utterly deadpan that she snorts. "Hey yourself. That's quite a greeting."

"Gotta keep you on your toes, Lieutenant," he quips and settles into the dirt next to her. T-Bone grabs the med kit one-handed and sets it on his leg, unzipping it and starting to rummage.

"What are you looking for in there?" she questions. "Not really anything specifically," he answers, "Just seein' what we got. You allergic to morphine?"

"No and you're not giving me any, either," she says stubbornly, with a tail swish that kicks up dirt.

"Kat's alive, Felina, I'm not gonna give you any, I mean, I'm not gonna force it on you," he says reassuringly. Then he sets the pack nearby, zipping it closed again.

"I'm pretty sure I'm okay without it…. how'd you get a narcotic anyway?" she gives him a weird look.

"Oh we got connections… Don't look at me like that!"

"...Uh huh. 'Connections.' With the katnip crowd."

"You're not funny."

She grins and shifts a little, forehead furrowing. "...Any idea what time it is?"

"Yeah, it's… eighteen fifty-two. You okay? You're frowning."

"Ground's getting hard," she mutters.

"Hold on," he says, crouching closer. A couple moments and a rush of pain later she's settled down on T-Bone's lap again with his chest supporting her torso, something that's actually kinda comfortable.

She nods, with her head resting against his arm. "If it's that late it's past my break time. And quitting time. I had a coupon for half off pizza tonight too. D'you think Pappadelli's Pizza is going to have that three for two deal for Decoration Day next week?"

He laughs. "Yeah, probably. They do every year… you're a fan of Pappadelli's too, huh?"

"Oh who isn't? Salmon, anchovies, and habaneros with mozzarella," she says rather dreamily.

"How about bonito and Mongo peppers?"

She makes a face. "You're nuts. I like hot peppers as well as the next girl. But I'm not gonna be a martyr to them."

"Well hey, how bout we plan on... Razor, what's up?" he greets the smaller SWAT Kat, who's just clambered up over the ledge. He has a somber expression. "I think I found a way out…." he says slowly.

"Hey, that's great, buddy! Uh, isn't it?" T-Bone says, and blinks as Razor shakes his head. "I found a lava tube. It's not very big."

"What d'you mean?" His partner asks.

"I mean you're never going to fit, T-Bone, and you're not going to be able to crawl it, Lieutenant…"

"Hey, are you calling me fat?" T-Bone asks with a faint smile. Razor chuckles and shakes his head. "Nah, buddy. You're svelte as ever."

"So what you're saying is, you're going without us," Felina says bluntly.

Razor nods slightly. "I think that's the only chance, right now. And I think I can get through. There's going to be some tight squeezes but it does go through to a lower cavern that seems to be open from my scans. The plan is to get out from there. Even if I can't get all the way through, I can at least get close enough make radio contact with the Enforcers."

T-Bone is eyeing him with some suspicion, noticing there's a lot of 'if' in his comments. "What are you not telling me."

Both SWAT Kats look at Felina with surprise as she murmurs, "He could get stuck in the tube."

"...Heh," Razor takes off his helmet and rubs at the back of his head, expression sheepish. "Well. Yeah. That could happen, I'll admit. I still think I can get through. And it's the best shot we've got," he adds.

"Hey, no way! I'm not letting you crawl off on a suicide mission," T-Bone snaps.

"It's not a suicide mission," Razor argues. "I'll make it. Even if I don't get through, after they get to you guys they can dig me out."

"Are you nuts? You're okay with getting trapped in a hole? No way, Razor! We wait for the Enforcers," T-Bone says stubbornly.

Razor shrugs. "Well, uh, yeah we could do that. If they're looking for us. And if the Lieutenant has that long."

T-Bone growls as he seems to mull that idea over.

Seeing weakness, Razor presses forward. "Aw come on T-Bone, it's either try this or sit here on our tails. The Lieutenant needs medical attention."

"Leave me outta this, I don't want you crawling down a lava tube either," Felina interrupts.

"Whether you like it or not, you're involved. Besides. With all the air vents I've crawled through this ought a be a piece of cake."

T-Bone had been quiet through their banter as he mulled the situation over. "You're not gonna do anything stupid, are you, Sureshot?"

Razor grins at him. "Who, me? Nah. Well no stupider than the normal, anyway. I'll be back with the TurboMole in two shakes of a kitten's tail," He replaces his helmet, then reaches down and grabs one of the water bottles, tucking it into his shirt before he starts taking off the shoulder harness and anything else attached to his G-suit. "It's probably going to take me four, five hours to get out, alright?" he says, piling the equipment neatly.

"...and if you're gone longer?"

He shakes his head. "It might take longer. I'll get you out. But for now... Well, you two are on your own," he says, soft.

T-Bone shrugs. "I got faith in you, Razor. Alright? Come back when you got the cavalry behind you."

The two partners clasp hands a moment, and Razor reaches over to squeeze Felina's shoulder. "Take care of yourself, alright Lieutenant?" He glances at T-Bone and heads off.

Felina can feel how tense T-Bone is as Razor walks away, and then the big Kat sighs. "Well crud."

"He'll be ok." Felina murmurs. "You two are probably the most capable Kats I know."

"Yeah... Crud, Felina-"

"Go ahead, T-Bone, I'm fine," she says encouragingly. He gives her a grateful look and will cautiously shift her to the ground, before getting to his feet and racing after his partner.

Felina glances after him then starts to poke very cautiously at the bandages. She can feel something hard under her fingers, and notes it's been well packed in with gauze and wrapped, but when she glances down at her fingers the tips are soiled with blood and a nasty smelling brown-green. Shivering, she pulls her arm out and scrubs the fingertips off in the dirt then holds her hand out to the fire. The rocks Razor had piled up were good and hot and were radiating a nice toasty heat. Her ears prick at voices, but she couldn't see them from where she was laying. The possible argument between the two vigilantes was brief, at least.

She was poking boredly at a wrinkle in the space blanket when heavy footsteps return and T-Bone sits, defeated next to Felina. "He wasn't kidding about me not fitting. I should lay off the Krispee Krunchie cereal."

Felina smirks and reaches to pat his hand. "Ah, you're just big boned," she teases. "He'll be alright. I doubt he'd crawl down there if he knew it was impossible. You're both kinda nuts but I don't think you're suicidal."

"Nah, maybe not that. But…." he leaves the thought unfinished, gets up, and starts rummaging through the packs. But Felina thinks she can complete his statement in her mind.

'There's no greater love than he who lays down his life for his friend.'

There's a 'crack' and T-Bone is shaking a glow stick alight, and he clicks off his helmet lamp. Between the fire and the glow stick, it's fairly well lit in a little circle around them.

"Warm enough?" he asks, settling down next to her head. She shrugs. "No. But I think I'm getting a fever so I probably won't be," she replies. He reaches over and smooths her hair back from her forehead, then touches her ear. "Yeah, you're right about that," he agrees, and pulls his hand back. He sighs. "I got some tylenol. Don't want to give you anything by mouth though. Unless…." he eyes her and Felina gives him a look.

"Don't you even think about that!" she snaps and he holds his hands up defensively. "Okay, okay! Yeesh, Felina," he laughs, and ruffles her hair gently again. She sighs. "Sorry. I hate being sick. Starting to feel like throwing up again."

"Yeah I'll bet you do. You tell me if I can do anything for you."

"Talk to me?"

"Huh?" he raises an eyebrow. "I am, aren't I?"

"Yeah but… I meant, talk to me, about… whatever."

"Oh! Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh….. I got nothing," he replies, helplessly.

She rolls her eyes. "Okay well, tell me about… Oh. Tell me how you guys became SWAT Kats," she grins.

He laughs. "No, that's too personal. It's probably enough to say that there was a need, with Dark Kat frustrating the Enforcers right and left."

"Yeah…. Dark Kat's why I entered the Enforcers," Felina murmurs.

"Oh yeah?" he asks, looking at her. "Wasn't cause of your uncle, huh? I figured you woulda always have wanted to be an Enforcer."

She shakes her head. "Well, when I was really little, I wanted to be a fairy godmother," she jokes. "Seriously, I was planning on entering the military. I didn't want to have people saying I was, you know…. favored by Uncle. Whatever." T-Bone nods, understanding on his face. "But then Dark Kat crept out of the woodwork, again. Uncle almost had him when another pilot got in his way," she continues, not noticing the expression darkening on T-Bone's face. "Anyway. Dark Kat got away. I decided right then and there that I needed to be an Enforcer. I mean, that psycho is trying to take out my hometown. So I tore up my military recruitment papers and went into Enforcer Basic the next month."

"How'd your Uncle like that?" he asks with a smile. He was idly sort of brushing her hair back from her forehead and she reaches up to take his hand, but she doesn't push him away. T-Bone raises an eyebrow as she cups her hand in his.

"Oh he pretended like it didn't mean anything, but I got the impression he was pretty proud," she says with a faint grin. "My parents weren't real happy. But they didn't want me going into the military either." She pauses. "You go to college or anything?"

He hesitates a moment. "Well….. Not exactly," he replies. "I did alright in school but I'm not like, the studious type, you know? My grades were good enough for me to get into MKCC, but I didn't apply."

"So what did you plan for your life?"

He chuckles. "Actually? I thought about joining the Enforcers," he replies.

"What, really? I can't see you in Enforcer grey."

He nods. "I kinda grew up on a rough side of town. So we saw Enforcers a lot, and there was this one guy…. This beat cop who could always be counted on to have some Fruit Zippies on him. Us kits followed him everywhere."

She nods. "Uh huh. Clawridge. Appleton beat. Retired last year. I don't know him, but he was a flyer years ago, until he got a clot in his eye and went to a street unit. Appleton huh? You're giving yourself away, SWAT Kat," she says slyly.

He snorts in derision.

"Well anyway, people were all 'oh that's the guy with the Fruit Zippies!' Then there were the obligatory 'stranger with candy' jokes," she says.

T-Bone chuckles. "Yeah well…. Officer Clawridge is a pretty good fella. When I was about…. oh. Eleven? I walked into a little bodega just as some punk in a mask was robbing the joint. Clawridge had snuck in and he was behind a shelf, and then he spotted me. So he dragged me down and he's like, got one size 11 boot in the middle of my back, practically standing on me," he says, grinning, "and Clawridge is like this, got his duty weapon in hand and staring around the shelf at this guy, who has NO clue he's back there. The clerk, she was just handing money over like he told her to."

"How come he didn't stop the robbery?" she asks.

"Well, there was a method to his madness. Perp had a knife and the clerk was within grabbing distance. So when the guy backs off and starts out of the store, Clawridge jumps out. And he's going 'Stop or I'll shoot!' I SWEAR I saw eight of that guy's lives fly off, wings fluttering," he says dryly. Felina giggles. "The crook yelped and he dropped the knife, and it falls point down RIGHT THROUGH HIS SHOE."

Felina can't hold it in any longer, she starts to laugh. Then she's crying and the next thing she knows, she's back in T-Bone's lap and he's rubbing her back. "Ugh…." she moans, when she's kind of collected herself. . "I didn't think you were -that- funny. So, the clerk?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, the bodega. Well anyway, after the guy had a knife in his foot he didn't want to play no more and Clawridge arrested him pretty quick. Then he grabbed me by the collar and literally kicked me in the tail." He shakes his head, remembering. "I mean he was MAD. I didn't exactly do anything wrong, right? But I don't think it did anything for his anxiety level when I walked in." He chuckles, thinking a moment. "Anyway I really respected that guy, so I thought about the whole Enforcer route."

She smiles. "What about Razor?"

"Ah you'll have to ask him his story when he gets back with the TurboMole," he says quietly. "That's all for him to tell, not me."

They're silent for a few long minutes. Other than the chemical crackling of the fire, and the occasional crinkling of the space blanket, it was silent. Though maybe not totally, she realizes. With her head settled against his chest, she can hear the steady lub-dub of T-Bone's heart. With his strong right arm behind she felt safe. Despite the pain and the nausea and the fear, somehow she knew she was safe.

Then she hears a new noise. At first she thinks he's purring and her first impulse is to leap from his lap, despite the gut wound.

But he was humming. Sounded like something you'd listen to while working out. "Bored?"

"Honestly? Yes," he replies wrly.

A small sigh escapes her and a moment later she mumbles "Know any Weird Al?"

He snorts with laughter so hard he jerks, and it jolts her and she grits her teeth.

Hours later, he's not laughing anymore. Felina is trembling so hard her teeth are chattering. T-Bone is softly murmuring to her and trying to rub her low back. Her temp had increased steadily, and the pain in her gut had only spread. In an attempt to control her temp he'd draped wet gauze over her forehead and neck.

"What time is it now?" She mumbles.

"Twenty three thirty two..." he replies, after checking his watch.

She nods real slightly. "So soon. He'll be out soon. And coming."

"Yeah, I know he is." T-Bone agrees. "Betcha Razor is halfway here." He reaches for the gauze and gently mops at her face.

She drags in a ragged breath, and nods slightly. "And Uncle."

"Course, the Commander will come with him." T-Bone agrees. He places the gauze back onto her forehead and sighs. "Yeah. Even I'm looking forward to seeing your Uncle," he says wryly. "Not much longer now. You hold on, alright?" He murmurs.

She slightly nods her head, eyes closed as she nuzzles into his chest. "Don't let go of me. You're warm," she says softly.

"Don't worry... I won't. I got you, Felina."

Nine hours had passed. T-Bone sighs and looks down at Felina, who is on her good side in the dirt, her head and shoulder cradled on his leg. He dabs gauze at her mouth, wiping away black, grainy appearing saliva. She still shivered despite the blanket. The last of the fire start cubes were gone long ago.

But Felina hadn't spoken now for two hours, not to complain about the cold or anything else. He'd forced some tylenol on her (maybe forced was a bad word, considering how it had to be administered which was hella awkward, but he couldn't wake her enough to get her to do it herself) and given her a shot of morphine.

He'd left her once, and tried to find some way out that Razor had missed. He'd covered her with the tarp and tried using the few explosive items in his Glovatrix to shift dirt, but didn't find anything but more dirt. He'd used his Glovatrix and grappling hooks to climb to the opening in the ceiling, and prodded around with a piece of iron. While he knocked some down it seemed like there was plenty more where that came from. He tried a futile hour of digging as close to the chamber entrance as he could and managed to advance almost four feet before it all collapsed on him. And spent a 15 minute expanse shouting down the lava tube, craning his ears for a response.

And gained nothing.

Then he'd heard something, and had rushed back to her. Felina, crying? She had been, so he tried to comfort her and against his better judgement, gave her another shot of morphine.

She'd been quiet since then. Until she starts to retch. He's been over at the Cyclotron, trying the radio again. But when he heard her he rushed back, trying to hold her into her side while she gagged up thick black. After that she'd lapsed into silence again.

"Sorry, lieutenant," he murmurs, and strokes a bit of hair away from her face. "I was hoping to have you to myself like this, sometime, but these aren't exactly the circumstances I woulda chosen." He sighs. "Razor shoulda been back. And there was a little air current through that tunnel... before. Before but... I don't think he got through." He pauses as she coughs faintly and spots out more black matter, then gently he wipes her lips again. "Wish we could have a chance to I dunno, do something together. Take a walk, get an ice cream," he whispers. "Normal stuff. Normal stuff that maybe a ... A couple would do. Not that that's an option...

"Damn it, lieutenant, this isn't fair..." He sighed and continues to stroke her hair and she stirs very slightly. "You're an amazing pilot. I woulda liked to take you up in the Turbokat. Maybe let you fly her a little, huh? You know you woulda liked that. Not just anybody gets to fly my baby right? I'm really sorry..."

"T-Bone," Felina mutters with eyes closed. "After I... Fly your jet you... want to... go to Pappadelli's with me?"

"Sure, 'Lina, anytime, alright?" he replies softly.

"Uncle'll be thrilled. Date with a SWAT Kat... Mmmm. How 'bout sardines, bonito, and habaneros."

"Is it a date?" T-Bone asks in a bit more hopeful voice than he liked.

"Any.., meeting is a... Date. Why're you still here?" She asks.

He blinks. "Huh?" He gives her an off look, confused by the change in tack.

"You...promise me. You will get out. Alive. You're promising. Promise?" Felina murmurs, eyes open now. She looks up at him and he grits his teeth.

"Ssshhh hey now. I'd be getting the both of us out if I knew of a way." T-Bone says, frowning.

She shakes her head slightly. "You're just... Staying for me. Thanks. Don't want to... die all alone. Wait til... I'm gone," she murmurs, and shuffles her head against him a bit more.

He is silent for a few heartbeats and just rubs her shoulder gently. "Sure Felina. It's a deal," he replies, deciding not to argue.

"B'sides... there's nobody else I'd... rather die in a dead volcano with... than you," she says entirely deadpan.

He blinks at her then laughs. "Thanks,I think?" he finally finishes.

She nods then closed her eyes again. She's quiet so long he figures she musta lost consciousness again. Then the feisty Enforcer Lieutenant chuckled and cleared her throat. And starts to rasp out a song.

"Nothing they could do but... sit down there ... With the... Black coal alllllll... around them..."

T-Bone stares at her for a moment before he is capable of speech. "You got to be kidding me. You're not gonna sing that... Are you?" T-Bone asks, eyes wide.

" And the... water rose so... Swift and cold..."

"Felina, why the... You can't sing that!"

"An un... likely place to... Drown."

"Felina," he says urgently, his hand on her shoulder. "Stop it."

Her eyes flare with a bit of the old fire. "You gonna stop me? Nine in the mine trapped... down below..."

"... You know if you gotta sing Dropkicks, you could sing Tessie or something that's not... That." He says with distaste.

"S'not in my range," she replies cheekily. "Lighten... up. What's it hurting?"

"...Ahhhhhhhhh, what the hay. Can't believe I'm doing this…" He takes a breath and clears his throat. "Down! Down! Down in the ground!" He sings, basso profundo.

Her face cracks into a wide grin. "An' this'll be... Th ' day I didn't kiss... My wife goodbye..."

"Take care of the family I'm buried alive!"

"Down in... The mine trapped... Down below…Hey, T-Bone, this song... Is cheering me up."

T-Bone flinches and looks at her. "Why do you say that? What could -possibly- possess you to say that?"

"Because… The miners that… it's about? The miners got out."

"They did?"

She nods. "All... Nine. In the mine... Trapped down... Below. Down, down... Down in the... Ground," she sings softly into a whisper.


	2. Chapter 2

((I do not own the SWAT Kats. This is done only for my own amusement and hopefully for the amusement of others. This fanfic is a stand alone and not related to the characters in Chance to Live and the Clawson Labs universe.))

"Can you see it yet?" Feral's voice crackles very faintly through the helmet radio, but the voice coming through the crawler's speakers was clear. "Affirmative, Commander, the unit is right in front of me," he replies.

Inside a cavern that had once been a huge lava bubble, a small command post had been set up. Winches and pulleys had been utilized to lower the surprisingly compact Pumadyne cave crawler equipment down. The Commander and a few support staff were inside, with a flood light shining down from above illuminating the area and the opening to a lava tunnel.

"A field test like this is invaluable for our research, Commander," the technician enthuses, for at least the tenth time. He is working the joysticks on a small controller, staring at a screen ahead of him. "I see him, Commander!"

Feral leans in, peering at the slightly grainy video. "Hmpf," he mutters, spotting the familiar red and blue helmet. The SWAT Kat's face is mostly hidden, and Feral can only see the helmet, a few fingers, and the shredded cuff of his g-suit. The portion of lava tube Razor was in was just barely narrower than his shoulders could pass through, and he'd been unable to back out again. Trapped as tight as a cork in a bottle, there was yet one small saving grace. He'd gotten just far enough. His radio signals reached the Enforcers gathered at the foot of the volcano.

"He's fortunate Pumadyne had this technology available. Hmm, yes. He took quite a risk," Feral says disapprovingly, loud enough to be heard over the generators.

They'd been flown in to power the huge flood lights illuminating the dead volcano island that had been Dark Kat's newest, and rather predictable base. A base that had swallowed his insubordinate, risk taking, beloved niece.

All the local volcanic islands should be bombed to prevent a repeat situation, Feral thinks to himself. The best way to flush out vermin is to destroy their habitat, and Dark Kat seemed to favor volcanos. To hell with the ecologists! Surely Manx could do something? His ruminations are interrupted by the technician's excitement.

"If you say so, sir. I'd say we're the fortunate ones, getting to participate in real rescue conditions during development!" Feral finds himself rolling his eyes at the excessive enthusiasm.

A mining expert from Megakat Metallurgical had been consulted by video uplink shortly after the explosions that had rocked the volcano. He was blunt. The explosions were certain to be set charges, in his view. The tunnel entrances appeared fully and professionally collapsed.

And there was no heavy digging equipment on the island. Experienced mining staff and proper machinery would have to be brought by boat or flown in.

If anyone was still alive in that volcano, they were not going to be rescued. The expert felt there was very little hope.

Within moments of cutting the connection, Commander Feral had ordered that the TurboMole be retrieved from the TurboKat. There were immediate problems. Alarms sounded and a mechanized voice made the situation clear: If the security on the jet continued to be threatened, detonation would occur.

Feral had appeared for a few moments like a broken kat. None of the Enforcers nearby dared breathe a word. But within minutes he was shouting more orders. Miners, excavator operators, and their equipment were sent for. He had a job to do whether there was anybody alive in there or not. Dark Kat was presumably still inside the volcano, and needed apprehended, or his death confirmed.

It would take two hours just to organize the first bulldozer and deliver it to the island. Work would then finally get underway. Then, one of the radios had picked up what sounded, maybe, like a voice. The sound faded out too quickly to be certain but after some work a technician picked up another garbled static transmission over a multi-bandwidth check. It galvanized Feral into reorganizing the search for Dark Kat into an active rescue operation.

And after Razor's successful radio contact had crackled through, there was general rejoicing. Even Feral was uncharacteristically lighthearted and thumped one of the Sergeant's on the back so hard the kat staggered. The SWAT Kats and the Lieutenant were alive! At least for the time being.

The length of those lives were starting to grow more and more uncertain. The bulldozer and a backhoe had been on site for nearly five hours now, digging at the tunnel where the SWAT Kats had last been seen. It was particularly dicey work, as they were on a narrow ledge with a one lane roadway leading up to it. Another heavy machinery team was at a lower elevation trying the same route through another tunnel, but forty five minutes ago they'd hit a cement retaining wall, and nobody was quite sure what would be on the other side did they breach it.

The excavation was not moving nearly swiftly enough. They needed the TurboMole. And they needed it yesterday.

Feral's ears perk as the speakers crackle. The voice can at least be heard over the generators. Without the light shed by them, the work crews and Enforcer staff would of been in pitch blackness. After all it's past 0300.

Razor's voice comes through the speaker from the crawler unit's mic. "Can you hear me, Aaron?"

"Loud and clear," the technician replies.

"Do me a favor, uh, you want to narrow the beam and reduce it a few percent? You know, just in case..."

"...the big wigs who put this thing together are wrong about the calculations?" Aaron replies cheerfully. "Already done. Getting fried or exploding would really ruin your day. I'm engaging the beam now."

Razor tries to wriggle his arm a bit further over to get his fingers shielding his eyes as the small six legged remote device started zapping at the tunnel walls with tiny 3 second bursts of laser fire. Each cracked a little chunk of rock away, but it was slow going.

It took nearly an hour and a half but finally enough rock is chipped away that Razor is able to wriggle out through the narrow bit. Unfortunately the next bit of the lava tube is only barely wider, too narrow for him to move his arms at the shoulders. For the next 7 feet he can only wedge his fingers and toes into any available crevice in the rock, and move forward scant centimetres. After almost half an hour the tunnel widens out a bit again and Razor breathes a sigh of relief. He army crawls along for another twenty minutes, with the remote crawler device and its camera and lights trotting along ahead, before he pauses for a breather.

"Alright Commander let's try this again," he says, the crawler picking him up much more clearly than the helmet's mic. He opens the case of his Glovatrix and starts tapping on the controls inside.

Outside every head swivels to look expectantly at the Turbokat. And... Nothing. Razor sighs and taps his radio. "I can tell it's a no-go. I'll keep moving."

He sticks an arm out and begins again with his agonizingly slow crawl forward. With each movement the jagged rock of the lava tube scrapes at his suit and fur, and skin. He stops every few minutes to open the Glovatrix again and tap at the controls. Nothing.

For another two hours he inches and scrabbles forward, with the Pumadyne crawler proceeding ahead of him. Unbeknownst to him, the video is still engaged and Feral watches stonily as the Kat struggles. And noticeably tires.

Finally he's progressed far enough that the frequency penetrates. There's a chirp from the Glovatrix this time and then the Turbokat canopy slides back.

"Thank you SWAT Kat, the Turbokat's security is down," Feral says into the radio, then is waving his baton. "You've got your orders, you three! Move!"

"Sir!" Three Enforcer staff who'd been waiting in a mix of boredom and anxiety at the edge of the lava bubble rush to the Turbokat, two to the cockpit and one heads inside the cargo bay. A fourth, a petite she-Kat paramedic with a Tonkinese face is following the third Enforcer into the cargobay, lugging two large medical bags.

On the radio, there is a low whistle from the tom inside the cargo bay. "I wondered how they fit all those vehicles in here... You guys have got to see this!"

"Later, Tigertail," replies the pilot, who is just throwing a leg over the edge of the cockpit. "Daaaaaaamn I can't believe it, I'm sittin' in the Turbokat! I'm gonna be FLYING the Turbokat! How come there's never a camera when you need one, huh Chet? Wonder what this switch is for?" He feels it's rather important not to touch it however so his curiosity goes unrequited. "How you doin' back there pard?"

"I'm great. I'm stuck in a WSO's dream playground and I'm afraid to touch anything," Chet replies. "I want a look at the ordnance in the carousel when we set her down."

"You should, I've never seen a setup quite like this," Officer Tigertail's voice crackles the speakers in the WSO's helmet. "Lieutenant? I've found it and I'm starting 'er up. Me and the paramedic'll be ready to go in a moment."

"Alright, this bird's moving." Within moments the Turbokat is in the air. The pilot is grinning like an idiot until he remembers, then forced a stern expression. In Feral's eyes he's probably not supposed to feel happy about flying such a sweet ride.

A different engine noise starts to faintly echo from below the pilot's feet. "We're ready down here," he hears in his radio.

"Acknowledged. We're waiting for the heavy machinery to move. Holding position."

"I see 'em," the officer replies. The backhoe and bulldozer are lumbering away from the tunnel entrance, or what had been an entrance before Dark Kat had blown the charges. It'd been just big enough for the Cyclotron to comfortably pass but was now filled by tons of crushed rock. In VTOL mode, the pilot maneuvers near to the narrow roadway with the cargo doors open. It's a tricky maneuver that's making him sweat.

"Machinery are clear. I'm in position, Officer Tigertail. We are a Go in three two one... Hit it!"

The TurboMole roars as the Enforcer behind the wheel stomps on the gas and the heavy digging equipment soars out of the cargo bay. It sails through the air for a brief instant then impacts the narrow ledge heavily. Wheels spin and it gets stuck with the rear two on the right side hanging off the ledge. "Oooookay hope this works..." Officer Tigertail says worriedly, looking out the side window at the spinning tires. He hits the controls and the Megawinch flies out and stabs into the rock ahead of him, and the TurboMole pulls itself to safety.

"Phew..." He mutters, and the paramedic sighs in relief as both slump into the seats.

"I thought... Never mind," she says. shuddering. She was in the back seat of the TurboMole, and starts to dig through her bags and lay out equipment.

The officer wipes at his forehead with the back of his hand. "Yeah, you and me both, sweetheart."

"Who are you calling sweetheart?!" She shouts, wielding her stethoscope like she's about to smack him with it.

He recoils and ducks down in his seat, just in case. "S-sorry!" The officer hurriedly shifts it back into drive, engages the drill on the TurboMole and starts advancing on the tunnel.

Feral watched stonily until he saw rock flying, then he leaned over the console's microphone. "My Enforcers are starting to move through the tunnel in your TurboMole, SWAT Kat," Feral announces.

"Great, Commander. If they don't deviate from the tunnel course, it should take them direct to my buddy and your niece," Razor replies. He felt like weeping with relief, but that was too much work. He suspected he was too dehydrated for tears anyway.

"You have about um... 80 yards to go, Razor," Aaron says. "The crawler is gonna keep lighting the way."

"Sounds good fellas. Razor, out." Again he starts crawling, gritting his teeth now and then. He's gone about sixteen yards when he grabs at an out cropping with his left hand, and a sharp obsidian shard slices deep into his palm.

"Crud..." He murmurs, pulling his hand back and eying the bloody mess. With a sigh he starts digging at his suit pockets, trying to find something to staunch the blood flow. Hands increasingly shaky, he finally rips open a pocket and pulls out the lining and tries to wrap the hand up. It wasn't working well, so finally he just laid down and let it bleed.

And his head falls forward heavily to rest on his forearm, eyes tightly shut.

Every muscle in Razor's body was screaming and his flight suit was shredded. Blood was still oozing from myriad other smaller lacerations and abrasions. Sharp edges have been slicing into his hands and fingers and his knees and his sensitive toes. For hours. And he wasn't out yet

Around the video monitor there's a flurry of movement as Aaron and the Commander lean in to the monitor. Feral is frowning. "He's in distress," he growls, and he glances at the technician. "Can that crawler of yours pull him out if necessary?"

Aaron shakes his head. "It's not strong enough for that."

Feral frowns. "He's going to have to save himself then," he muses and then he grabs his radio. "One of the medics needs to get his tail down here."

"Razor?" The voice comes through the speaker in his helmet. It was Aaron the technician. "Are you alright?"

Razor exhales. "Yes. I'm just taking a breather." It was tempting to doze off. Maybe he'd get up later. After a nap. But he was done. The TurboMole would find them. He'd completed his mission.

"Sure. You deserve that. You did good."

Razor just nods very vaguely, his head still down on his forearm.

"Razor? ... Razor you sure you're ok?"

The SWAT Kat grunts an acknowledgement. "...How much farther do I got to go?"

"Uhm, just about sixty two yards."

The SWAT Kat doesn't answer.

"Razor? You coming?"

"Not sure I'm making it out," Razor mumbles.

There's silence for the space of several heartbeats, then Feral's voice crackles through the speakers. "Razor." The vigilantes eyes blink open with some surprise. Feral never called him by name. He swallows, trying to wet his dry throat. "Yes Commander?"

"Are you giving up?" The question was surprisingly gentle.

Razor stares blankly for several seconds, then he sighs. "Huh. No. Can't do that... Gotta get up. T-Bone will be worried if I'm not out," he mumbles, and he lifts his head and begins crawling again.

The Commander nods with some satisfaction.

"How did you know that was going to work?" Aaron questions him.

"Simple. I didn't. But I hoped he was the kat I expected he was," Feral replies.

Aaron looks at him oddly, clearly not understanding.

"Sir?" asks a new voice, the requested medic who had just walked up on the scene.

"Which of you would willingly crawl down that thing to save even yourself?" the commander asks, gesturing with his baton at the lava tube opening. "I doubt I would. But it seems evident that the driving force between those two is their camaraderie. He is doing this for his friend."

Silence falls after that and the Commander, medic, and the technician watch the screen as Razor keeps struggling forward.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

"T-Bone. Please." Felina whispers.

It was a pitch dark, deepest of blacks. A darkness that could be felt. Darkness so thick you could taste and smell it. There'd been no point in wasting the power in his helmet or the Cyclotron headlight, or his last precious glow stick. He wasn't afraid of the dark and there was nothing that he needed vision to do. So light was a luxury not an essential.

He had her curled up in his lap again, her head against his shoulder and his back against the wall. There wasn't much to say and there wasn't much to do but wait. So they waited. In the pitch dark. And he tried to comfort her.

"Can't."

"Hold on, Felina. Alright?"

"Can't. Please."

"Shhh."

"PLEASE. T-Bone."

"Any minute now and they'll come."

"No. Hurt. Hurts... Do it." Her fingers are gripping his shoulder harness tightly.

"I'm not gonna do that to you, 'Lina."

"But I'm hurting," Felina chokes out. Her breath is fetid.

By feel T-Bone leans in and softly kisses the dry, tearless cheeks. "Don't make me do that to you. Don't ask me again."

"Please... Hurry. Kill me. It hurts," she whimpers. He can feel the delicate flutter of her eyelashes against his lips and he kisses her cheeks again, his own tears rolling down.

Then his ears prick. "Sounds like there's some cave in somewhere."

"Good. Come on... Big rock. Right on the... head."

He ignores her, his ears swiveling to listen better. After a moment he slowly starts to get to his feet, the Lieutenant still in his arms.

"I hear an engine..." He says softly, his ears still swiveling. "...It is! It's the TurboMole. I'd know the sound of that drill anywhere!"

"...Are you sure?" Felina asks weakly. She squints her eyes tightly shut and swallows a yelp when he reaches to switch his helmet light on. And the dirt in front of the tunnel entrance is shaking.

"Yes! Yes it's definitely the TurboMole. We're almost out, Lieutenant!"

"Not... A giant scorpion?"

"Huh?"

"You forgot," she accuses.

"I did not," he says defensively. "No giant scorpions, no lava and no toxic waste."

"Too... Bad. I'm bored."

"You are terrible at being a sick person did you know that?" T-Bone quips. She squints one eye open and makes a half smile at him with a hint of her old sparkle in her eye. "Yeah.."

A new noise catches his attention and he looks up towards the ceiling. "… oh. Crud." He says this rather calmly, while still staring upwards. Because the TurboMole was coming in through the base of the dirt fall. And the rest of it was about to come tumbling down.

When the dirt fall hit, the visual was gone. The high power headlights were out like a snuffed candle. Swiftly T-Bone turned his back to the onrush of dirt and debris. Felina clings to his chest with her face crushed against him. Blinded he staggers in the swirling dirt and relieved he finds the wall and leans his shoulder against it. He feared making other movement as it was entirely disorienting. The occasional small rock hits his back or his helmet. T-Bone, irritable, hits his radio. "Hey! Razor, turn off the Megadrill, let the dirt settle!" His irritation is interrupted by the shudder that runs through the Lieutenant's body. Pausing, he squints down at her, half blind. Fear wraps its tendrils around his heart at the slack cheeks and half lidded, rolled up eyes.

"No. No, don't do this now, Felina." He turns and runs towards the TurboMole, which opens. Officer Tigertail stands with a bright grin, looking rather heroic, he feels. He'd been planning this speech and only wished his girlfriend could see him now.

"The Calvary's here T- woah!" He exclaims as T-Bone doesn't hesitate, just jumps right into the back of the TurboMole. He'd seen the paramedic.

"Help her," he begs, and the startled medic quickly directs him to lay the Lieutenant in the back. The very first thing the paramedic does is touch her forehead. She recoils and swiftly starts taking the Lieutenants vitals.

"Come on. Felina, open your eyes, sweetheart," he begs, chaffing her hand. Felina whimpers something and tries to pull her hand away. He glances at the paramedic, who's taking her stethoscope out of her ears and looking grave.

He turns as the TurboMole starts up again and Officer Tigertail yelps as T-Bone grabs his collar. "Hey! Who said you were driving? Move over!" he orders and the officer jumped over into the passenger seat. T-Bone takes one look back at Felina before he jumps over the seats into the drivers seat. The TurboMole roars to life and he spins it 180 degrees before entering the tunnel again.

"Where's Razor?" He shouts above the noise of the engine.

"Not out of the lava tube yet!" Tigertail shouts back. T-Bone looks up at him with alarm. "What? He's still in there?"

"How fast can you get us out of here!" The paramedic shouts above the engines. She looked frightened.

"Buckle in!" He shouts in reply and throws the switch on the MegaThrusters.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

Razor forgets how long it's been, and how far it's been. Maybe he's always been here, crawling through glass sharp shards in a dry, hot Purrkatory. He was so tired. His head hung and he didn't even notice when the crawler falls out of his line of sight ahead of him.

And when he's stopped looking for it is when his fingertips clamp around the edge of the lava tube. "He's made it!" a voice calls and hands are grabbing his and pulling him out.

The light is too bright for his eyes after the hours within the tube, and he squints them tight shut. Arms wrap around him and steady him as he stands, then the SWAT Kat's legs buckle. "He's goin' down!"

"I got him!" a voice calls he's assisted to sit on the hard ground at the lava tube edge. "You alright?" Asks an excited voice, which he recognizes as Aaron, the enthusiastic Pumadyne tech.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm just... Gimme a second..." Razor puffs. He hangs his head back against the rock wall behind him in exhaustion, and gasps heavily. "...Never want to do that again." After a moment he opens his eyes and looks up with a smile, looking for stars washed out by the light setup.

Even though there was nothing he could see but the flood light, he still thought the view was beautiful.

A hand touches his shoulder and the Commander speaks. "You need medical attention," he states and it's an order rather than an inquiry. Razor shakes his head and the helmet scrapes at the rock wall that he's too tired to lift his head away from. "Be... Okay in... a few."

Ignoring him, the Commander waves his baton at Razor and the Enforcer medic crouches down next to him. He grabs Razors left hand with the deep cut, turning it back and forth and touching the wound edges. Razor hisses at the touch. "You can move your fingers, right?" he asks. Razor nods absently, wriggling them.

Feral steps forward with a water bottle in his hand and holds it out to Razor. "...Thanks, Commander," Razor says, a little surprise in his voice. He grabs it and takes a mouthful, swishing the dust away. He spits before drinking thirstily and sighs, relief on his face.

The Commander nods, eying the medic who's bandaging up the hand swiftly before prodding at other deep abrasions and lacerations the SWAT Kat has gained all over his body. Frankly the vigilante was a mess. Feral winced at the thought of what it must have been like to voluntarily give oneself 'road rash'. The medic was taping and bandaging the worst areas.

"I'll fix you up so it'll hold til you get to a doctor. You are gonna need a lot of stitches, and an antibiotic. Want us to medivac you to Megakat Memorial?"

Razor makes a pfffffth noise. "No, thanks."

The medic grins. "I suppose you've had worse huh?" He grabs another gauze pad and is trying to make sense of the shredded mess Razor's feet have become.

Razor half chuckles. "Maybe but today's definitely getting a mention in my journal." He puts his foot up on the medic's knee and grits his teeth when he tried to separate the toes, which are caked together with blood.

Feral seems not to be attending to the conversation. The Commander has his hand to his ear as he's listening to something on the Enforcer bandwidth.

Razor takes another thirsty drink and grins at the tech. "Aaron, right? I recognized your voice. That is a pretty neat little contraption," Razor says to Aaron, who is appearing proud as a new father as he's trying to shut down the crawler system to pack it for transport. The two launch into a rather technical discussion of the crawlers specifications. It helps distract him from the medic.

Feral clears his throat uncomfortably as he interrupts. "I've been informed that your friend and my niece are just exiting the TurboMole."

Razor's ears perk and he looks up sharply, some fire coming back into the exhausted expression. "They alright?"

Feral smiles slightly, even though the smile seems slightly sad. "They're both alive. Your friend is better off than my niece, by all reports. You did well for a couple of vigilantes." He hesitates before adding, "There are few Kats who would go to the risk you just did," he murmurs and turns to leave, a very bemused Razor sitting in his wake.

Rocks crunch and there's a shout and Razor looks up. Amazed he watches as T-Bone, his fur so dark with dirt he looks like a grey tabby, jumps downwards from rock ledge to rock ledge and lands heavily. He staggers a step and almost stumbles before he can straighten up and swagger towards them. "They're packing the Lieutenant up in the med-evac chopper now, Commander."

Feral nods to T-Bone as he hurries towards him and for a moment the pilot thinks the Commander is going to slug him. But instead Feral reaches to place his hand on T-Bone's shoulder. "If….. if my niece passes away, I know it's not your fault," he says sternly. "And I want to thank you for your efforts. Thank you. Thank you, to both of you. You've earned my respect," he adds, then he's rushing to grab the rope and winch setup hanging over the crater ledge. He sets a booted foot into the loop at the end and holds on as he's winched upwards. T-Bone looks like he could be knocked over with a feather.

Then T-Bone glances over as Razor struggles to his feet. In four steps the bigger tom is at his friend's side. Next he's wrapping his arm around his buddy's shoulders and steadying him before he's pulled into a rib bruising hug.

"RAZOR! Great job, partner!" T-Bone enthuses.

"Erk! Yeah, thanks. You can let go now," he replies with a chuckle.

T-Bone pushes Razor away by his shoulders and eyes him. "You alright pal?" his buddy asks, his expression worried.

Razor nods, but T-Bone seems unconvinced. "Let's sit."

Razor sinks back to the ground with a groan.

"Is he alright?" T-Bone demands of the medic, who shrugs. "He seems to be, considering."

"I'm fine, Hotshot." Razor smiles a little. "Hey, thanks," he calls at the medic, who was tucking everything back into his bag before moving away.

"I uh, well you had me worried. 'Cause you were sure takin' your sweet time," T-Bone says nonchalantly.

"Yeah well let's not get into it. I'm out, anyways. The Lieutenant?" He asks.

The technician is hauling away his equipment and the two vigilantes are left alone.

"Felina is... Breathing. She's sick buddy. Really sick." T-Bone says, soft. "She is one brave she-kat, Razor. No doubt about that. I wouldn't of handled it..." He shakes his head, and looks down at Razor's feet which are basically shod in bandages.

Razor nods. "After that many hours..." He pauses. "That musta been hard to watch. You're alright?"

"Yeah, fine."

"Do you want to go to the hospital and wait for a report?" Razor asks.

"Well... Wait, don't you need to go for yourself?" T-Bone questions and Razor shakes his head.

"Nah. I have superglue at the hangar. I can take care of the cuts. All I need is a good shower first. If you want to, you could drop me off at the hangar, then go to the hospital and see what they say about the Lieutenant. You want to go wait with Feral and I'll catch up later?"

He hesitates, before he shook his head. Razor was exhausted, he could see that, and yet he was willing to go sit for hours in a stuffy hospital waiting room. Razor was a great friend.

"Nah... There's nothing I can do right now. We should go home," he muses, then he is quiet, staring at his hands.

There's a long stretch of silence and finally Razor elbows T-Bone gently. "What?"

"Nothin'." T-Bone mutters gruffly.

"No really. What's the matter, buddy? Were you worried about me?" Razor teases gently.

T-Bone is silent for about three heartbeats, before he explodes. "Of COURSE I was worried about you! Do you have any idea how hard it was to watch you crawl down into that death trap?!"

Razor leans away, eyes wide as T-Bone's gestures flail wildly.

"You got stuck didn't you! Razor… Razor did you KNOW?"

"Well I uh… I didn't kn-"

"DAMMIT Sureshot!" I can't believe you."

"Well how els-"

"You LIED to me, Jake," he hisses.

"Not exactly! Wait a sec! I didn't lie to you at all!" he replies defensively.

"...I don't want you… doing that. I mean I don't want you hurt. I MEAN LOOK AT YOU! You look like something chewed you up and spit you out," T-Bone says, and he grabs the cuff of Razor's g-suit and lifts his arm.

"You don't look all that fantastic yourself, mudball," Razor retorts, jerking his arm back "Besides. Risking injury is kind of part of the game?"

T-Bone sighs. "Its not a game. And, besides. I don't gotta like it do I?" He teaches into a pocket and pulls out a water bottle, given to him when the TurboMole had picked them up. And offers it to Razor.

"Nah… nah you don't haveta like it. Thanks, pal," Razor doesn't hesitate to take the bottle. He just drained it and lay his head back against the wall.

"...You sure you're alright?"

"I will be. I'm just exhausted."

"You sure you don't want to go to the hospital?"

"We don't do hospitals for a reason."

"I don't think Feral would have us arrested. Not this time."

"He might not, but I bet Steele would," Razor says.

T-Bone shrugs. "Probably a good point. Steele's a toad."

"T-Bone…. buddy. Are YOU okay?"

"I'm fine. -Nothing- happened to me. You're sliced up and Felina is" he chokes a moment before he can get the word out "dying…. I'm fine but... Sitting there powerless while thinking about you... and watching Felina... it was worse than any torture Dark Kat coulda devised."

"Buddy. You're taking this too hard."

"How can you say that?" Then he pauses, thinking a moment. "You're right. But I was scared… I was worrying for you. And watching the lieutenant and… and scared. For myself too."

"It's alright T-Bone. It's ok to be worried about your own tail for once. There wasn't anything you coulda done-"

"That's exactly the point, Razor." T-Bone shakes his head, briefly, then wraps an arm around Razor's shoulders. "I thought I lost you, Sureshot," he says quietly, and squeezes Razor's arm. Razor gives T-Bone a thump on the chest with his fist. "Don't go all soft on me buddy!"

T-Bone snorts and pulls his hand back and gets to his feet, extending his hand to Razor. "Alright. I think you and me need to get home. After I get a shower I'll cook something. We both need a tuna burger." Razor grabs T-Bone's hand and the bigger tom pulls him up.

Razor grins. "Hey no complaints from me. Let's go home partner," Razor chuckles, his arm wrapped over T-Bone's shoulder as they stagger towards the cavern edge.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

The blob of green jello in the bowl was wriggling in it's wriggly gelatin way, and not looking any more appetizing the longer she poked at it.

Six days of ICU, four in the med-surg unit, three surgeries, and 10 days of TPN had enlivened her existance since she nearly died in Dark Kats volcano, and Felina had been wondering if it was possible to starve before she was allowed to eat again. Not that she was really starving. The total parenteral nutrition flowing through the line in her arm and all the fluids were solving that. But that wasn't exactly the same as -eating-. The nurses were all excited earlier about 'writing a nutrition order for the kitchen to send up! You finally get to eat today!'

Well she had been excited too, she had to admit. Until the delightful assortment of clear sports drinks, a melty popsicle, and the jello arrived. She prods the jello again. "Really?" Felina grumbles. "It doesn't even have any pears floating in it…" She was sitting in the bedside chair in her room on the med-surg floor, with the tray table across her lap. "Not that pears would make it food. This is not what I call food."

On the bedside stand were a few cards and three beautiful bouquets that were starting to wilt. One from her parents, another that was from some of the other Enforcer pilots, and a small bud vase arrangement from her uncle. The flight line crew had sent a card that had a shirtless hunk with a stethoscope around his neck, and a very inappropriate suggestion on how to get better fast with the help of a hot doctor. So she'd had to hide it in the drawer before somebody saw it. It was under the two boxes of chocolates that she wasn't allowed to eat, one from Steele (ew) and a second from the girls in kickboxing.

On her feet were two warm, fuzzy blue socks. Not usually her thing, but they'd come in the mail a couple days after her first surgery and they were actually kinda nice. There'd been no card, and no return address.

She had her suspicions about that, though.

There's a knock on the doorframe and she looks up from tormenting the uncaring jello with her fork. Callie Briggs steps in with another bouquet. But instead of roses these are big fat old fashioned pink and white peonies that look like they'd been cut from somebody's garden, and instead of a vase with ribbon they'd been tucked into a quart jar. She blinks, and raises an eyebrow.

"They're not from me," Callie says crisply with a smile. "Special delivery, actually. Air mail direct to the Mayor's balcony at City Hall."

Felina smirks and Callie sets the jar of peonies down among the roses, and starts rifling through her purse. "How are you feeling," she asks. She had a thin square box wrapped in red paper in her hand.

"I'd feel better if they'd give me real food," she shrugs. Callie grins and hands over the package and a couple cards. "The blue envelope is from me, but the package and the yellow envelope came the same delivery as the flowers," she says impishly.

"Oh um, thanks Callie. ... How... How is- I mean, are they?" Felina asks. She pops a claw out and starts slitting open the blue envelope.

"Oh well... They seem alright. They haven't been here to see you...?" she questions.

"Probably can't just walk in and ask for me at the visitor's desk, being vigilantes and all," Felina replies. Then she shrugs. "But then, why would they come? It's no big deal. Is it? I mean it's not..." She pulls Callie's card out and raises an eyebrow. "...how did you get His Honor to sign this?"

"I could get him to sign the entire city over to Dark Kat and he'd never notice," Callie says with an eye roll. Felina eyes the card, a duplicate of the hottie doctor monstrosity, and shakes her head.

Callie snaps her fingers. "I forgot. I was supposed to give you a message. I'm supposed to tell you 'sardines, bonito and mozzarella'?" she says, sounding puzzled at the words.

"... You can tell the special delivery team that I got the message loud and clear," Felina says wryly.

"I'm glad you understood that one, because I'm confused," Callie admits. Felina just smiles and holds her peace.

"Well I should probably be getting back," Callie says, glancing at her watch. "You had probably better try to eat your jello. They'll never let you have real food if you can't prove it'll stay down," she grins. With a wave of her fingers the Deputy Mayor slips out.

Felina smiles, and glances at the package and the card. First she unwraps the package and finds two CDs, one the Dropkick's latest, and a greatest hits album that included Buried Alive as one of the tracks. Laughing she opens the yellow envelope, and finds your standard teddy bear holding a "get well soon" balloon on the front. She flips it open, and just spots two signatures below the generic get well poem before a small slip of paper flutters out onto her lap.

Picking it up she finds it's a Pappadelli's coupon, with a paper clipped note attached to the back.

Lieutenant, she read, hold on to this. When you get out we'll go share a pizza. Though until your stomach is better we better compromise and order sweet yellow banana peppers. Take care of yourself. T-Bone.

Felina reaches for the peonies and gently plucks one from the jar, and brings it to her nose. And then for a little while she sits there, breathing in the deep fragrance of the peony with a sweet, sorta sad smile on her face.


	3. Chapter 3

When the bell rang, Felina grumbled. She had just gotten comfortable on the couch and now what? Salesman? Jehovah's Witness? Anyone important, like Uncle or mom and dad had a key. So she sighs and and grabs the remote to her sound system. The thudding beat coming through the stereo speakers stops as she hits pause. "Yes?!" she shouts at the door.

"Pizza delivery!" calls back a gruff voice.

Felina stares at the door a second, before shouting back, "You got the wrong apartment! I didn't order a pizza!"

There was a pause and a shuffling noise. "I got the right apartment! One large pizza for 3D. Somebody ordered it!"

Fur stuck up on the back of Felina's neck. While she hadn't heard of any home robberies that'd involved a fake pizza boy, that was probably because nobody was stupid enough to open the door for a pizza they didn't order.

Her apartment wasn't exactly in a bad section of town, but it was cheap, and crime rates were high throughout Megakat City. Most of her neighbors knew that an Enforcer Lieutenant lived in 3D. This was a selling point in their viewpoints, at least it was for the generally law abiding folks.

For Felina though it could be a headache, since more than once she'd been awoken by a neighbor banging on her door with a domestic problem or a theft complaint. Once she chased a burglar off the fire escape, clad in only sweatpants and a bra.

Other Enforcers she socialized with complained of the same thing. Their neighbors came by at all hours for crises ranging from broken toes to angry ex-boyfriends, or seeking free legal advice instead of consulting a lawyer. However, in the ten days she'd been out of the hospital Felina found having neighbors who liked you had its perks. The grandmotherly she-kat next door had brought her sugar cookies, a pan of brownies, and multiple cold cut sandwiches and bowls of home cooked fish stew. Twice now the upstairs neighbor had come to sweep and do dishes and a third neighbor brought in Chinese day before yesterday. Between her family dropping in and the neighbors she was getting on pretty well.

Maybe it wasn't a mistake or an enterprising robber and one of her friends had ordered it for her, but who? The only thing she could be certain of at the moment was that she wasn't gonna find out by staying on the couch.

After pausing to think it through she leans forward and grabs the pull on the drawer in the coffee table, opens it and retrieves a handgun. "Just a second," she grunts, checking the magazine.

"...Hey, Lieutenant! Are you sitting down? Don't get up."

She pauses, already mid-stand and halfway bent over. "What?" Before Felina can straighten up, there is a "pop" and the door flies open. Immediately Felina is on guard, as the tom steps over the threshold. "FREEZE!" She shouts, and on instinct and long practice, Felina is aiming right between his eyes. And then she realizes: Blue g-suit, red harness, and a surprised looking yellow tabby. It's T-Bone. She quickly points the gun up towards the ceiling.

"Geez, Lieutenant!" T-Bone shouts, reaching for the sky and balancing a pizza box on one hand and a six pack of milk in the other.

"T-Bone! How did you- Did you just break my door lock!?" She blurts.

"No! Course not, no just… can I put my hands down now?" he asks plaintively.

Felina glances up at the weapon in her hand and her expression is a mite sheepish. "Sorry. What are you doing?" She shakes her head and lowers the weapon, pointed away from them both. "...I can't believe this. I'm being invaded by a pizza boy," she quips.

"I uh… I didn't figure I should make you get up..." He slowly brings his arms down, though he's watching her extremely cautiously in case he needs to reach for the sky again.

"...But...you just broke into my apartment." She stares at him.

T-Bone scowls back and pushes the door to with his foot. "You pointed a GUN at me!"

"Why does this surprise you?" she responds tartly. She puts the weapon back in the drawer and pushes it shut with her knee. "Is there a good reason for making me think I was being home invaded at least?"

"Well uh, umm... Um. Hey, are you alright?" He asks, heading towards her with a worried expression. "You look like something hurts."

"Oh." She pauses, seeming to think over how to answer that. "Well. I am in pain when I'm moving around. Just a little bit," she clarifies firmly. She was slowly straightening up, with a hand across her middle.

"Sorry. I was trying to save you that," he admits. "You know by…." He waves vaguely at the doorway.

"So you just break in?!"

"...Well evidently this was a bad idea," he says, rather bitterly, and puts the pizza down on the coffee table none too gently.

She winces. "T-Bone, don't. I'm sorry... I shouldn't say that... I'm glad you're here? Uh. Why are you here?"

"Pizza. Remember?" He says with a little shrug. He sets the six pack down on the coffee table, along with the pizza box. "I thought it'd be easier… you know. Than going out and being mobbed by autograph hounds."

"Autograph hounds? Really?" She tilts her head, looking at him rather dubiously.

"Uh huh. Everywhere I go." He smirks. "Everyone wants Ol' T-Bone's autograph."

She eyes him, arms wrapped across her chest.

"It's true! When I walked in to pick up the pizza, I had a little trouble getting out of there. I had to sign a lot of napkins and couldn't leave 'til Papa Pappadelli found Mama Pappadelli and they got their picture took with yours truly." He sounds slightly proud.

"You're kidding."

"Nope. Mr. Pappadelli is gonna hang the picture above the cash register and he demanded I come back with Razor for another picture. He said they're gonna name these toppings the SWAT Kat Special and I got it free."

She stares at him in utter shock. "That old grump?," she laughs. "I don't believe it. He never gave something away free in his life."

"Cross my heart, and hope to die," he says, and shakes his head. "Then an Enforcer sedan pulled up and I had to book it."

"Fame not all it's cracked up to be?"

"Something like that," he grins.

She makes a dismissive gesture with her hand. "... Don't expect me to ask for your autograph."

He kinda chuckled. "You already have it, I sent a card to you when you were in the hospital."

"Pffft, I guess," she replies, flippant. "I'm holding you to using that coupon that was in it sometime, too, SWAT Kat."

T-Bone raises an eyebrow. "That's right, I did give you a coupon didn't I... Sooo… does that mean we get another date?"

"Who says this is a date?" she retorts. "This is not a date!"

"Oh really!" He changes his voice to a high pitched squeak. "Oooooh T-Boooone, any meeting is a daaate!"

She goggles at him. "I don't sound like that!"

He laughs and she sighs, shaking her head.

"You are lucky I like you." Felina says grouchily.

T-Bone's ears perk with interest at that statement.

She eases herself back onto the couch. "Join me?"

He pauses a second then moves to sit on the arm of the couch, watching her.

She tilts her head at him. "What, you afraid I'll bite?"

"No, afraid I'll jostle the couch and hurt you," he replies, serious.

"Oh. Nah. No. I'm not that delicate." she laughs. "Soo…. you're here."

He blinks and looks down at himself. "I…. seem to be?" he says, with a grin. "Don't want me here?"

"No! I mean yes. I mean..." She stammers.

He snorts back a laugh. "Should I leave? You're awfully nervous, Lieutenant."

"Felina."

"Yeah yeah, look. I should go, maybe, it seems this is a bad time. Enjoy the pizza," he murmurs.

"I liked the peonies!" Felina blurts. "And the socks. Those were from you too, right?"

His expression relaxes a little and he settles more onto his perch. "Heh, yeah uhm… well I'm glad you liked them, Lieutenant."

"Felina."

"Right, right. Felina. Habit."

She smiles a little and exhales. "And. Thanks for the card. And the CDs. I think I'm wearing them out. I appreciated it, um, knowing you were thinking of me anyway," she says.

He gives her a patented T-Bone grin. "I hoped you would like the CDs. Sorry I didn't bring everything in person."

"It's not like you could have just walked into the hospital lobby, or come knocking on my window," She argues.

He grins. "Why? Probably the easiest way actually...I dunno why I didn't think of that. But uh, I have to admit me'n Razor were busy with some things..." He reaches to pull a couple milks off the six pack.

She frowns. "Problems with any of our baddies of the week?" she questions.

He shakes his head. "Nah nothing like that. Just... I coulda made time," he grumbles, almost to himself. He offers her a can and she takes it.

"Um. Don't beat yourself up over it..." There's an uncomfortable silence for a few heartbeats before she speaks again. "Hey. You been out to the island?" she asks.

T-Bone nods. "Did a flyby just yesterday. They're still digging," he says, looking down at his hand as he cracks the can open.

She shakes her head. "I doubt my Uncle really thinks they're gonna find Dark Kat."

"I kinda doubt it too, but he finishes what he starts, I'll give Feral that." He shrugs. "If Dark Crud could cloak the entrance to that bay, he could cloak a small escape vehicle. That's how that crazy megalo thinks, he plans for those little contingencies. Gonna take a long time to dig in there to confirm though. Maybe they could dump a few hundred bunker busters."

She smirks. "Even Steele's not that dumb..."

"Oh, Steele! Don't get me started on that idiot!" T-Bone exclaims. "You won't believe what that jerk did!"

Felina blinks. "I dunno, I might. It IS the Lt. Commander," she replies. "What happened?"

"He impounded our cyclotron and the TurboMole."

Her jaw drops. "You're joking."

Seeing it would take a little more explanation he starts to do so, after taking a sip of his drink. "Okay, where should I start? Me 'n Razor didn't load them up that day. I mean Razor was exhausted right?"

"Did he get stuck?" she interrupts.

"Yeah…. ?" He asks slowly. "He got wedged in the tube somewhere. Had to be lazer cut out."

"Uncle said something about it but he wasn't real forthcoming… He was kinda subdued about the whole thing. I thought he'd love telling me about one of you guys getting your tails in hot water."

"He probably didn't appreciate the extra work, getting Pumadyne involved and all that," T-Bone replied. He also thought, privately, she probably didn't understand how close it'd been- she'd had her own problems to think about and Feral didn't want to stress her.

"Uncle just said- well all he said was that Razor had risked his life. I just thought his manner was was… a little odd. You guys do that all the time. Anyway, you were saying?"

"Yeah, uh, so Razor gets out of the tube, you're off in the medi-copter- no reason for us to stay. Razor needs a meal and a shower and sleep. I did a quick security check, didn't find any bugs, you know- we left."

She nods.

"Sooo…Didn't come back 'til late the next day to do a pick up only to be met by a squad of really nervous Enforcers who were about to load the Turbomole onto a boat. Well we had an interesting conversation." He chuckles. "Heh, Razor was like 'You know we can just take it back, right?' Didn't really like encouraging them to forget their oaths like that- but they musta weighed their options and decided for us cause they helped us load it. So we headed to Enforcer HQ, landed on the flight line and demanded the cyclotron back."

"And they just handed it over?"

"No, Steele's orders do count for something. So I went to your Uncle. He immediately had it released. They just rolled it out of the evidence locker onto street level and Razor went down and drove it off."

"And then you just went back to base?" She looks at him disbelievingly.

He snorts. "Nah, went out near Megakat Springs and spent three hours going over both vehicles with a fine toothed comb to find the tracking devices stuck in them."

Felina burst out in laughter.

"The cyclotron had one inside the gas tank." he says with disgust. "I won't repeat what Razor said."

She shakes her head. "He's such an ass."

"Yeah, but we got them back."

"He really thought to impound your stuff… I guess technically, that would be within our orders."

"Yeah."

"Uncle hasn't changed any of his policies towards you. You're still personas non grata."

"Yeah," he smirks "but the Commander didn't arrest us when we came after the Cyclotron."

"Yeah well. I don't know why Uncle don't throw Steele off the force."

"Politics. The same reason he got that high rank in the first place.

"Cause his family."

"Yep."

"How's Razor?"

T-Bone takes a sip of milk, and shrugs. "He's ok. Fine. Uh. I guess." At her curious glance he shrugs. "He messed up his hand."

"Is it ok?" She asks with concern.

"Yeah... After he landed in the ER and got antibiotics. IV ones, he had to go back every day for two weeks."

"Wow, that must've been a really bad cut," she blinks.

"Well he glued it shut and... I don't know. It got infected.," he grumbles. "It was all swollen up and red and hurt him like hell. He didn't say much about it but I could see it in his face."

"Doctors glue stuff all the time, how come he had issues?"

He throws his hands up in the air. "I don't know! I know this much about first aid," he says, making an infinitesimally small space between thumb and forefinger. "I shoulda made him go get stitches," he says guiltily.

"You say that like you feel responsible for the whole thing."

He shrugs. "I shoulda watched over him better. The thing got nasty and he tried to ignore it."

Felina surprised by this strangely vulnerable vigilante, blurts "You're kidding me," and he looks up in surprise at her tone.

"...What?"

"Why's that your fault? He's a grown kat."

T-Bone laughs. "He said the exact same thing. 'I'm a grown kat buddy. You can't blame yourself for the stupid things I do'." He shakes his head. "Still. He's lucky he's not losing it."

"That bad huh?"

"Next time I'll just throw him over my shoulder and haul him to a doctor whether he likes it or not."

She laughs at his expression. "How'd he get cut anyway? You guys fight with the steak knives over the dinner table?"

T-Bone smirks, deciding if he should answer in the affirmative. "Nah, just a mission," he says at last, shrugging. There wasn't much point in telling her he'd sliced it open during their rescue.

They're quiet for a couple minutes, both sipping their drinks. T-Bone is first to break the silence.

"So…. Felina. How are you. How are you really?" he presses.

"Well, actually, pretty good. Thanks to you and Razor," she replies, then she tips her can back and drains the last of it. She looks at him out of the corner of her eye then sets the empty can down. "You don't look like you believe me."

He reaches for the six pack and pulls another one off, offering it to her. "Oh sure I do. I know you're a tough cookie," he says, as she takes the can and cracks the top with a claw. "How long are you gonna be off the force?"

She sips once and sets the can down before shaking her head. "I don't know yet, but a while," she admits.

"Oh." He frowns, then grabs another can for himself.

"Yeah I've got some more surgery coming up and-"

T-Bone looks up wide eyed, mid-puncturing his own milk can. "What? Why?" he asks, looking concerned.

"Uh. It's called a takedown and osteotomy revision…"

"A what?"

She holds up a hand as if to stop him. "You are probably better off not asking. But I'll probably get back to work six weeks after that."

"Whenever 'that' happens."

"Prettymuch."

"Oh."

"In the meantime I am bored out of my flea picking mind. Daytime TV is awful," she says and he laughs.

"That's too bad. You could watch Scaredy Kat," he suggests.

She makes a face. "What, really? No. Just no."

"You…. don't like Scaredy Kat?"

"It's a kid's cartoon."

"Scaredy Kat is my favorite!" T-Bone blurts.

She bursts out laughing at the indignation in his tone, then has to stifle the laughter when T-Bone scowls at her. "Sorry, It just doesn't do it for me, T-Bone."

"I dunno why not. That's high quality entertainment right there."

She rolls her eyes. "Sure. If you stay too long you're going to want me to watch it with you," she quips. "That would be… That'd be horrible. Watching a dumb cartoon with you." Then randomly her eyes fill with moisture.

"...What's the matter?" he says softly, his hand on her shoulder. He'd wrapped it back behind her and he kind of pulls her a tiny bit closer.

She pulls away and is wiping furiously at tears on her cheeks. "Nothing! Don't look at me like that with that face!"

"But you're cryin-"

"I'm not crying!"

"Well your cheeks are wet," he observes. "Come on Felina. What's got you all teary?"

"Because this is nice," she chokes out.

T-Bone's ears flick. "You're crying because this is nice?"

"It's.. it's this. Because of this. I want this, all of it. B-being here with you. And I can't have it. It's not even an option," she says, her voice thick with suppressed tears.

"...I guess it could be an option?" He says, hopefully.

She shakes her head and leans it back against his chest.

"You're thinking of your uncle aren't you?" He asks, voice soft.

She nods then shakes her head. "Yes. No. I mean yes, but that's not all of it. My god, I'm an Enforcer Lieutenant and you're a vigilante! And despite that... What happens when one or the other of us in in danger? It's… I can't focus on my job if I'm worried about you," she mutters into his g-suit.

His heart sings. "Maybe it's worth it?"

"Why? So one of us can be broken hearted when the other gets killed by the next crazy megalo to run into town?" she snaps, lifting her head and her eyes glittering.

He pauses. "Either one of us could fall in the shower and break our necks tomorrow morning, Felina. Stuff can happen."

"Yes but… we're both on the front lines."

"That's no different than the couples who are Enforcers," he argues, "or fire kats or nurses or… whatever. Crud, working at a refinery or a museum or riding the subway to the grocery store is almost a death sentence here. Too many katizens are killed in this town."

She makes a face at him. "I suppose next you'll give me that 'it's better to have loved and lost' garbage," she snaps.

T-Bone leans away from her, onto his elbow. "Uhhhhh I wasn't planning on it? Kat's alive Felina!" he grumbles, kinda frustrated. "Bad things can happen, anytime. To anyone. You gotta live in the now, hon."

She scrubs with her palms at her cheeks.

"...Is this all, I dunno…. you don't feel, I dunno, guilty or regretting or whatever about being a single she-kat?" T-Bone asks. "Not wanting to die single? Or something?" he asks astutely.

"That is the dumbest thing..." She suddenly teaches over and plucks a whisker!

"OW!" he yelps and swats her hand away. "What the crud was that for?! Geez, Lieutenant! Correct me if I'm wrong but you sorta just admitted you 'like' me like me, and then you try to rip my face off!"

Her cheeks get a tiny bit pink.

He notices this with some pleasure. "What? Am I reading too much into it?" he asks, with a small smile.

"...Even if that's true, we can't… We can't. It's not an option."

He sighs, deep. "If that's really how you feel…. I mean I can't say I'm against the idea? Of trying?"

"You're… T-Bone, are you saying you, um… you 'like me' like me?"

Then at the worse possible moment, with the two of them nose to nose on the couch T-Bone hears a voice that sends a cold chill down his spine.

"Felina! Why is your door…" Said door, still cracked open, swings wide and in steps none other than Commander Feral, with a bag of groceries in one arm. T-Bone, with a can of milk in one hand stares stupidly with hanging jaw at the Commander who gawks back.

"Er…. Hello, Uncle," Felina says. She's recovered somewhat from her surprise. "It's uh. It's not what you think?" she offers.

The commander frowns as he takes in the scene, at the two official adversaries with an intimate air on the couch, evidently sharing an impromptu supper. T-Bone looks like he'd be thrilled did the ground swallow him. At long last Feral clears his throat, as he struggles to balance the grocery bag on the small telephone table next to the door. "Excuse me," he says quite politely, and he steps out the door.

T-Bone sputters, spitting milk everywhere. "I was just leaving, Commander-"

"Oh, no, no, I'm leaving," the commander insists firmly, throwing both his hands up. "I'm sorry I interrupted your meal! You two kits have fun," he adds, and with a smirk he grabs the knob again, steps out and disappears back into the hall. The door shuts firmly behind him

"...That…. That didn't just happen. I'm dreaming." T-Bone is staring at the door with absolute shock.

Felina is just as shocked and herself looks rather doubtful of the experience. "I…. I think it did…"

"...Wow," T-Bone breathes and turns to look at her. "Bizarro world."

Felina laughs and wraps an arm over her middle. "Stop making me laugh!"

"Fine, next time I'll make you cry," he quips. "But for now..." He leans in and entwines his fingers with hers. "Pizza?"

"Love to."

Hours later the pizza box is empty, crushed, and in the garbage can. The last two pieces are on a plate in the fridge, neatly covered with plastic wrap. The six milk cans are empty, rinsed and sitting in the sink upside down to drain before being placed in the recycling bin. The remotes are off the coffee table, replaced by an empty bowl of popcorn and a pack of cards.

T-Bone is still sitting on the couch with Felina, or rather he's reclined back against the armrest and she's cuddled nearly on top of him. Her head is cradled right in the middle of his chest and he gently strokes a couple strands of hair off of her forehead. She was snoring, quietly, cute little whistle snores out her nose. As T-Bone holds her gently, he can barely believe that this is real and he can't help wondering how it will change once she is back to work. But for the now he was gonna savor it.


End file.
